There are numerous electronic components in increasingly numerous fields. Obviously, we are referring to microprocessors in machines or computers, but also semiconductors used in lights, commonly known as LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes). All these electronic components have the generation of heat during the use thereof in common. Unfortunately, the efficiency and service life thereof are closely dependent on the temperature (some authors apply Arrhenius's law to model the temperature dependency of the service life of an LED spotlight). The heat generated by the operation thereof thus reduces the performances thereof. For this reason, it is necessary to discharge the heat generated by these electronic components. The aim may be achieved by dynamic means, using, for example, a fan, a heat exchanger, or by passive means, for example using a radiator, also known as a heat dissipater or heat sink, these expressions considered to be synonymous herein.
Numerous heat sink models are available on the market. They all have the common features of elements consisting of high heat conduction materials, such as aluminium, tungsten, titanium, or copper, placed in thermal contact with the electronic component from which the heat is to be discharged, and a having a geometry suitable for discharging said heat at a distance from the component. For example, it is possible to cite heat sinks comprising a base element whereon the electronic component is attached and elements arranged radially about said base element enabling the discharge of the heat to an outer ring concentric with respect to the base element. Such devices are described for example in U.S. Pat. No. 7,153,004 and WO2006/118457.
To remedy excessive radial bulkiness problems, further heat sinks comprise fins or shafts extending outside the plane of the base element, discharging the heat to the rear of the electronic component. The fins may be arranged about the perimeter of the base element, as in WO2008/135927, or arranged on the entire surface area of the base element as in US2007/0036161, U.S. Pat. No. 7,108,055, U.S. Pat. No. 6,826,050, WO2006/017301, and WO2008/005833. The shape of the fins varies from a mere triangle to three-dimension geometries. In US2005/0257914, the base element is connected to a hollow body extending on a normal plane with respect to the first, whereon fins are attached.
The heat sinks reviewed above are of variable complexity and efficiency but all require costly or long implementation means. Indeed, they are either cast in a mould in one piece, or extruded, or alternatively, require the assembly of various parts. U.S. Pat. No. 5,660,461 describes a heat sink consisting of individual elements intended to be assembled to form a matrix suitable for discharging the heat from an LED unit. In one alternative embodiment, each individual element of said heat sink is formed by cutting out a metal strip and bending same in a U-shape, thus forming two fins connected to a base element. The U-shapes are then assembled into strips, or into matrices. Here again, significant manual work is involved and said heat sinks only apply to specific products comprising a multitude of LEDs.
Therefore, there remains a need for heat sinks for electronic components suitable for keeping the temperature of the electronic component at the lowest possible levels, and which are easy and inexpensive to manufacture in varied geometric configurations and quantities.